Press

In the most recent past, if you look at for example the 80s, 90s and early 2000s, luxury was defined primarily by a level of exclusivity that was driven by pricing. Luxury product was more heavily centered around logos, so these two elements together clearly conveyed a certain level of status. Now that we’ve transitioned towards “lifestyle” shopping, luxury has become much more multi-faceted. Luxury is now more about the value that the brand and its products add to the consumer’s lifestyle.

According to industry watchers, part of the reason for this change in mind-set is the traditional model encourages sales executives to focus their attention on those that they think will spend the most money, which is now harder than ever to decipher. “Between Goldman Sachs announcing their dress casual to the Internet companies, it doesn’t behoove anyone to presume who the customer is or not,” Robert Burke, a retail consultant, said.

While the influence of the royal family has always had appeal, Robert Burke, chairman and chief executive officer of Robert Burke Associates, says Markle is even more popular than the Duchess of Cambridge because of her background. “Meghan represents a less-conforming [person] than the expected perception of a royal and I think she will connect with even more people. She’ll dress children pretty tastefully, but it won’t be as traditional and prim and proper; it will have more fun and whimsy,” he said.

Robert Burke, founder and CEO of retail and fashion consultancy Robert Burke Associates, backs FLANNELS’ strategy. “There’s a lot of validity in having stores in secondary markets,” he says. “For many people, that’s their only real source of luxury goods and [FLANNELS] has built a strong business that way.”

“The cargo pant trend has the life of a cockroach,” said Robert Burke, a luxury consultant and former senior vice president of fashion at Bergdorf Goodman. He puts the pants into the category of “ugly” pieces enjoying a new life, like “dad” sneakers and “mom” jeans. Cargo pants are also the rare style to hit every spending segment of the market, Burke added, without following the usual trickle-down pattern of a trend cycle.

Galeries Lafayette has big ambitions for its new Champs-Elysées store, though it’s only a tenth of the size of the retailer’s Boulevard Haussmann flagship. “We’re seeing interest in smaller retail environments that are more intimate, where it’s easier to create a relationship with the customer and carefully select a mix of up-and-coming and big luxury brands. The idea that bigger is better is not the trend,” explained retail consultant Robert Burke.

Robert Burke, chairman and chief executive officer of Robert Burke Associates, who has been working with Farm Rio, said, “Farm Rio has been loved in Brazil for many years because of their vibrant and unique prints and how they encapsulate the Rio lifestyle. Fashion consumers today are looking for something unique, special and emotional. Farm Rio achieves that in the way it embodies everything Brazil represents.”

“We are in a new age, and designers can’t just rely on the quality of their product, it has to be marketed,” said Robert Burke, president and chief executive officer of consultants Robert Burke Associates. “The being the behind-the-scenes, behind-the-curtain designer is not the way things are moving. The whole feeling of anything manufactured or programmed to the consumer, especially the Millennial consumer, is a turn-off. They want to see something about the designer’s life that’s real,” he said, name-checking Virgil Abloh, Olivier Rousteing and Simon Porte Jacquemus as the new wave of designer digital marketers.

“For luxury brands, social media is the most immediate and effective way to market direct-to-consumer, especially since so many of them are pulling back from traditional advertising,” said Burke.

The drift toward relaxed workplaces began 1990s when companies started introducing “casual Fridays,” said Robert Burke, CEO of Robert Burke Associates, a retail and fashion consulting firm. It rapidly became entrenched with the rise of West Coast tech giants like Amazon and Facebook and their young moguls.

“Goldman was one of the last holdouts of a more formal dress code,” Burke said.

Robert Burke, founder and ceo of Robert Burke Associates, an industry consultancy, said, “It’s sad to hear because when one thinks of the Calvin Klein business and the Collection business and what it represented to American fashion and to the world, it’s sad to see it go away. It speaks to how delicate the fashion business is today.”

“And they certainly had the resources and the manpower to execute, but unfortunately it didn’t work. Sometimes it’s not just about the manpower and the financial strength. It’s really about product and talent,” added Burke.

“I think that fashion is aspirational and it has to have that element. I’m sure it gives pause for many of the big groups to question the importance of Collection,” he said. “Call me a romantic. I still think you need it. It has to make people dream and aspire to something. It’s really the launching point for everything,” he said.

Luxury consultant Robert Burke, chief executive of retail consultancy firm Robert Burke Associates, says many consumers who decide to spend $2,000 to $4,000 on a bag seek “longevity and recognition.” For trend-driven, Instagram-friendly styles, they have more options in the $400 to $600 range now than ever before.

For a millennial consumer, looking to make an investment, the Baguette and the Saddle “have a great deal of allure,” Burke said.

When I started my retail consulting business 12 years ago, department stores, specialty stores and retail developments were in a much different position than today. As the industry became fixated on e-commerce, many proclaimed retail to be dead. Retail isn’t dead, it’s just become really boring.

The marketing and digital strategy needs a refresh, argued retail consultant Robert Burke. “I’ve found the marketing is a little old, the styling is speaking to an older customer and it’s still in this in between area (between big designer brands like Balenciaga, and the new cheaper Instagram-friendly competition),” said Burke. “They should consider lowering their prices, upping their social media presence and converting to a more fashion-led brand.”